“9 years ago no one had really heard of Netflix.  Today Netflix sends out, on average, 1.9 MILLION movies a day & is considered a household name, mainly because of word of mouth.  Netflix was started by two guys out of a garage with an idea to make movies more convenient & cheaper to rent.  It’s not that Blockbuster or all the other video rental companies have done anything wrong, its just that companies like Netflix have come along & found an easier & cheaper way to do it.  Last year Netflix grossed over $800 million in revenue & had profits in excess of $100 million.

Now knowing what you know today about Netlix, if 9 years ago someone would have given you the opportunity to invest a few hundred dollars with Netflix & get paid every time you referred someone to the website and they rented a movie, would you have done it?

What Netflix is to the movie industry, SendOutCards is to the greeting card industry.  SendOutCards was started by two guys out of a garage in 2004.  They had an idea that people would actually go to their computers, choose a greeting card, type a message & hit send.  Then SendOutCards would actually print that card out, stuff it in an envelope, put the address on along with an actual postage stamp, and send it out for about a dollar a card.  Well, one year & about $900,000 later they realized it worked!  In 2006, SendOutCards grossed about $10.5 million; in 2007 around $25 million; and last year, in 2008, almost $50 million.  The best part is you can actually become part of this company and get paid when you send cards and help others do the same!”*

And that is why I have chosen this tool to show appreciation.

*Written by Brian Jacobs at www.cardappreciation.co

…send them a card.  There is no better way to brighten up someone’s day!

Get Well Card

I saw Charla Nash’s brother on TV and listened to her story…

In a matter of minutes, the lives of Charla Nash, and her family were shattered by a horrific tragedy.  On Monday, February 16 2009, Charla responded to her friend and employer’s request for help in capturing her escaped 200 pound chimpanzee.  The unquestioning decision to help was to be expected of Charla, but on this occasion, her good deed turned almost deadly.  When she arrived at the house, the chimpanzee attacked as soon as she got out of her car Stamford’s EMS, Firefighters and Police Officers raced to the scene and brought Charla to Stamford Hospital where four incredible medical teams worked frantically to save her life.  Charla was in surgery for seven hours, and miraculously made it to a point of stability.  With the dedication and skill of the staff at Stamford Hospital and Stamford’s EMS, Charla survived and was able to be transferred to the Cleveland Clinic where she will spend the next several months with the country’s best medical experts.  Although the doctors report Charla is in stable condition, she is far from out of the woods. She has suffered life-altering injuries to her face and hands.

Charla is now facing the biggest challenge of her life.  She is faced with a life of uncertainty, a life dependant on others.  This is foreign to Charla as she is not used to leaning on anyone else. Her life will be restricted due to her injuries, and she will have to deal with the haunting of this traumatic experience. She currently faces months, if not longer, in a hospital and years of rehabilitation.  The road to restored functionality and independence will be long and it is our goal to walk with her down this road offering whatever assistance we can along the way.  She worked hard to provide for her family but what little she had did not stretch to health insurance for herself or savings that could help offset the mounting medical costs

Charla Nash is a strong, selfless and independent woman. Everything she’s ever done was to benefit the people in her life; in return she’s asked nothing for herself except the joy in making others happy.  She’s brought happiness and love to everyone around her.  She was always smiling and laughing and willing to tackle life’s challenges with a positive attitude.  This tragedy will change her face and life but will never change her zest for life, her love for others nor who she truly is.  She is forever our Charlie.

Please keep praying for Charla and keep her in your thoughts.  We thank you for your kindness and generosity.

Here’s How You Can Help
Charla has a long and difficult road ahead of her. Her medical care and therapy will be intensive and are expected to be very costly.
Charla’s family encourages anyone interested in contributing to her care to make a donation through this website by calling 1-866-228-5970, or e-mailing the trust that has been set up on her behalf at donations@nashtrust.com or donations@thenashfund.com
Checks can be made out to: Charla Nash Supplemental Needs Trust

Mailing Address:

Nash Trust
Attn: Bill Monaco
c/o Feldman, Kramer & Monaco, PC
330 Vanderbilt Motor Parkway
Hauppauge, NY 11788

Easter Card

I woke up this morning and thought about Cheryl and Richard.  They adopted me years ago when I moved to California and became my west coast parents.  I don’t celebrate Easter — I am actually heading back to Chicago to celebrate Passover — but I know that Easter is very important to Cheryl and Richard.  So I decided to send them a Happy Easter card and let them know how much their friendship and love has meant to me.  My philosophy:  Never let anyone you care about visit an empty mailbox.

Thanks Richard Walker

Richard Walker is, hands down, the best breakfast place in San Diego.  If you live in San Diego or are visiting, you have to check it out.  They are located in The Pinnacle Children’s Museum Tower on 520 Front Street, downtown San Diego…  Get there early because by about 9am there is a line down the street.

My fiancé loves her breakfast and is always asking me to take her there.  We go there so much that I had to make a rule, because the food is so rich and delicious, that we can go after working out.

I never met Richard Walker, but I thought I would let him know that we are huge fans of his restaurant by sending him a greeting card.  Sending real greeting cards is a great way to let people know that you care.  SenditReal.

This movie explains the power of an unexpected card better than I could ever hope to do myself.  Enjoy!

Baby Boy

What do you do when people send you a picture of their newborn child?
If you are like me, you want to express your congratulations, but somehow an email or a phone call doesn’t seem like enough…

When my friends sent me pictures of their baby boy today,  I decided to send their pictures back to them in a card.  The best thing about creating a card for someone that you care about is that it makes you happy.  Giving is receiving and the giver gains so much more in the exchange, don’t you think?

Sending real cards — not ecards — is a great way to connect and create perfect moments for those that you care about.  SenditReal.

The Unexpected Card

Do you ever feel like the world is slowly closing in on you.  One late night last week, my friend, caught me on Facebook.  We started chatting and she told me that her boss had given her an ultimatum — quit voluntarily or get fired…  Just the type of thing that you want to hear in this poor economy.  It was making my friend physically ill!

Why was my friend’s boss out to get her?  She just did not like her.  Chalk it up to a cat fight that bled over to the workplace.  My friend called human resources and they bot involved, but now she is faced with a hostile work environment.

By the end of this Facebook chat, my eyelids were practically closing because it was so late.  But I knew that if I sent my friend a card I could lift her spirits and create a perfect moment for her.

So I sent her the card and then just forgot about it.  I was so delighted when I received this message from my friend today:

“Thank you SOOOO much for the card!!! It was really touching and really helped me to switch my thinking around. I’m going to bring it with me to work tomorrow to help me through the day. THANKS!!!!”

Sending real cards — not ecards — is a great way to connect and create perfect moments for those that you care about.  SenditReal.

Thank You Note

So we were driving through Little Italy looking for yogurt.  Yogurt places have been popping up like dandelions in San Diego.  I guess, yogurt has become the new ice cream.

We were in Little Italy and there, across the street from Princess Pub, we saw YOGURTLAND, Now Open.  We found out that it had been open since Christmas, but luckily they still had that Now Open sign otherwise we may have missed it.

What I liked about Yogurtland was their selection and creative flavors.  I had never seen Vanilla Wafer before.  It tasted just like the cookies that I loved as a young boy.  So we sat and devoured our mini tubs of yogurt while I read the educational art advertorials on the wall and I thought to myself, this is the best yogurt shop that has sprouted up in San Diego.  Thanks you Yogurtland.

Sending real cards — not ecards — is a great way to connect and create perfect moments for those that you care about.  SenditReal.